Over the last few months, the folks behind the Vans Musicians Wanted contest have sifted through over 22,000 submissions from burgeoning artists around the world. Each of the genre-spanning musicians was vying for a chance to be featured on a House of Vans stage and win a score of new gear — on top of the incredible exposure. Now, five finalists from three regions have been chosen, and they’ll all have their shot at the grand prize when they take part in the Vans Musicians Wanted livestream concert.
Taking place today, December 9th, the contest finale features five acts from each region: the Americas; Europe, the Middle East and Africa; and Asia-Pacific. Performing at 5:00 p.m. PT, the finalists from the Americas include 28-year old rapper and producer Charlee Parker, Philadelphia rock trio Total Rubbish, Los Angeles-based hip-hop artists Bando, Argentinian electro-pop musician Lucia Tacchetti, and Canadian hip-hop artist $tik.
Already occuring earlier this morning were the EMEA and APAC regional concerts. Representing the former were rapper/producer JoeJas, 19-year old British-Italian singer Nikaa, Verona pop-rock quartet Duck Baleno, grunge rock project YGGL, and British-Polish multi-instrumentalist Nat.
Rounding out the finalist from APAC were experimental rockers Num Num from Seoul, Singapore’s hard hitting rock group Ultra-Mega Cat Attack, Seoul-based DJ and producer H4RDY, Chinese underground hip-hop artists 龍胆紫PurpleSoul, and alternative rock-duo Niko Niko Tan Tan from Tokyo.
Guest judges for the event include Vans’ Global Music Ambassador Anderson .Paak along with J.I.D., Nilüfer Yanya, and Bohan Phoenix. They’re the ones determining which musicians get the grand prize: an opening spot for .Paak at a House of Vans venue (COVID-19 permitting), $2,500 for music video production and promotion, placement in Vans’ Spotify audio ads, a Vans Musicians Wanted customized Fender guitar, and an SJC drum kit. That’s on top of what all the finalists have already received, including a Fender Player Series guitar and accessory pack, premium Vans gifts, a Fender regional rep, spots on Vans’ Apple Music and Spotify playlists, and having their music added to the GoBig! music licensing library.
To watch all the international finalists perform and find out who wins, tune into the Vans Musicians Wanted livestream concert at Vans.com/MusiciansWanted. You can also meet the American competitors and watch the EMEA and APAC events below.
Americas:
EMEA:
APAC:
